Health Secretary promises to end postcode lottery ban by some PCTs on certain...
Andrew Lansley, the Health Secretary, has promised to crack down on Primary Care Trusts that refuse to buy certain drugs because of their cost, despite the drugs’ approval by NICE (the National...
View ArticleAstraZeneca to axe over 10% of its worldwide jobs as patent cliff effects...
AstraZeneca has announced that it is making over 7,000 of its 61,000 worldwide staff redundant as a cost-cutting measure, in light of its falling revenues and the patent cliff. The patent cliff is the...
View ArticleNICE produces best practice guidance to avoid postcode prescribing
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) – the body which provides guidance on what to use when diagnosing, treating and preventing disease within the UK, has produced a new set...
View ArticleGSK chief warns of European market trailing US and Japan as a centre for...
The GSK chief executive, Andrew Witty, has sent a chilling warning to Europe that it risks losing key innovative pharma companies as the market is hampered by the euro crisis, which is seeing prices...
View ArticleDepartment of Health PPRS Report shows commitment to UK pharma industry but...
The Department of Health has underlined its commitment to the UK’s pharmaceutical and life sciences industry, but it has also highlighted how the prices of products are less in the UK than comparative...
View ArticleMerck the latest to announce job cuts as pharma industry faces the “patent...
Merck, the international pharmaceutical giant, has become the latest pharma company to announce job cuts and restructuring. At this stage, it has not said how many jobs will go or where that will...
View ArticleCalls for stronger international counterfeiting laws after fake Avastin drug...
There have been calls for stronger anti-counterfeiting laws after fakes of Roche’s Avastin cancer drugs have been found in the US. An investigation has revealed several different distributors involved...
View ArticleBig pharma says “greedy” 11% of wholesalers and pharmacists are the cause of...
Some wholesalers and pharmacists in the drug supply market have been accused by manufacturers and some other pharmacists of being “greedy” after figures have suggested that they are the reason behind...
View ArticleGovernment pushes for telehealth to make cost savings
The Government could save £1.2bn over a five year period if the take up of telehealth increases. Paul Burlow, the Care Minister, wants to see three million patients with long-term conditions to...
View ArticleHigh Court wouldn’t infer fixed exchange rate for international contract that...
P&G supplied products to S. The contract provided for prices stipulated in euros, with payment to be made in pounds. There was no mention in the contract itself of any particular exchange rate....
View ArticleGSK gives welcome boost to UK life sciences industry and thumbs up to Budget...
GSK has given a massive boost to the UK life sciences industry with an announcement on the back of the Budget that it will spent £500m on a new manufacturing plant and create 1,000 jobs in the UK....
View ArticleGSK and J&J launch biotech investment fund
GSK and Johnson & Johnson have launched a fund to invest in biotech start-up companies. They are doing this in conjunction with Index Futures. The pharma and healthcare giants are each investing...
View ArticleUK pharma market to have real growth of less than 1% from 2010 to 2015
The UK pharma market is likely to experience real growth of 0.4% between 2010 and 2015. This is still better than a 3.2% real terms fall in Europe for the same period. The UK will be badly hit by the...
View ArticleMPs mount pressure on health ministers over pharmaceutical supply chain problems
Pressure is mounting on Government health ministers over the issue of shortages in the pharmaceutical supply chain. About 20 MPs have now signed up to a Parliamentary motion calling for urgent...
View ArticleGovernment offers £4m funding as competition prize to reward innovation in...
The Government is offering a prize of £2m each in two separate competitions for innovation in healthcare. One is a solution to change people’s behaviour to reduce the impact of obesity and alcohol...
View ArticlePharma patents drop significantly according to Withers and Rogers report
The number of patents filed by big pharma has fallen dramatically according to figures published by Withers & Rogers LLP, the patent and trade mark agents. The top 10 pharma companies filed just...
View ArticleAll Party Parliamentary Pharmacy Group hears conflicting points of view in...
The All Party Parliamentary Pharmacy Group has heard conflicting evidence over the supply chain shortage that is afflicting the UK pharma industry. On the one hand, the Association for British...
View ArticleEvidence of patent cliff underway with 2011 fall in NHS drug spend
The first evidence has been emerging of the effects of the patent cliff, with NHS spending on pharmaceuticals falling from £8.83bn in 2010 to £8.81bn in 2011, according to figures from the NHS...
View Article£180m fund for SMEs in life sciences industry launched
The £180m fund for small and medium sized enterprises in the life sciences industry is being made available from 30 April, the Government has announced. Under the Biomedical Catalyst, the Medical...
View Article3D printer development may lead to make-your-own medicines
Glasgow University is pioneering the use of technology in which 3D printers are used to create drugs. Ultimately, they expect the technology to be used in customised drugs. The researchers said they...
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